Nora Raleigh Baskin

Many voices tell the story of a middle school with a bullying problem. Baskin is a strong writer, but this story didn't come together to make a cohesive whole.

Most of the bullying in this is fairly typical (Facebook-type bullying, mild physical violence, mean nicknames, cliques) and includes both boys and girl. The most interesting part is the comparison to the animal kingdom by way of a pack of dogs and monkeys at the zoo. A Saint Bernard is even one of the narrators.

I agree with other reviewers who've said that this book could've been stronger with fewer points of view. That way we could've gotten to know our main characters better.

One piece of praise I have to lay on this book is that the villains have souls and we get to see a bit of why they bully other kids. One is lonely because her parents are rarely around. One is angry because his older sister is disabled. It made me think of a quote I saw on Pinterest:

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Mock Newbery 2010

I really loved what Baskin did with the first-person narration in this book. The main character and narrator, an autistic boy named Jason, tells us his head is flying off of his body and his mother is saying, "Stop doing that to your hair," but we don't know that he's doing anything to his hair, which subtly conveys what Jason is and isn't aware of when he's having a panic attack. This book is full of stuff like that. One of my favorite things about reading is the chance to live in someone else's head, and this book definitely has that going on. Also, I am a sucker for a well-meaning, but unreliable narrator.

Another thing I liked about this book was that Jason is a writer. Baskin does this very meta thing where Jason talks about some of the basic rules of writing (e.g. how to use irony) and then something happens in his story where that rule is either conveyed or broken. That kind of thing could come off as overly didactic, but it doesn't, because it seems intentional on Jason's part; it's one of the tricks he uses to tell his story (not something the author is sticking in to teach us something).

There are heartbreaking moments in this book, but it's not a total downer. And at just under 200 pages, it's a quick, fascinating read. If I taught 6th or 7th grade language arts, this it something I'd put in my curriculum.… (más)

I really loved this book. I wish that I had it to read it when my brother, who is autistic. Jason Blake is a twelve year old, intelligent, a creative writer and unsure of himself. I even liked the book for the many writing tips that Jason offered in his narrative. Not wanting to look people in the eyes because it gives too much information to process is something that my brother and Jason share. I remember too that my brother and Jason have a tendency to wear belts too tight. Rocking and flapping hands are very common, especially with younger children with autism.

One of the biggest problems is feeling accepted and bullies can definitey cause great distress! I always that my brother was struggling in our mostly neurotypical world. My heart went out for Jason and I immediately knew why he was relieved with his girl friend was blind. Rebecca, definitely would not be looking directly into his. It is bad that her voice in the e-mails was changed when she met him in person. Friendships can be difficult to develop when you are neurotypical but much worse for neuro diverse people.

I really got engaged in this book and wish that the author would continue with Jason Blake as an older person. It would interesting to read about him as a teenager. I would also welcome a book about an autistic person at a much older age!

I highly recommend this book.… (más)